Week 40: Home Stretch

By this time, your tiny bundle of joy may have already arrived! If not, don’t worry—most women give birth between 37 and 41 weeks of pregnancy.

While it’s usually best to let nature take its course, in some cases, if a pregnancy has continued too far past the due date, labor has to be “induced.” This is a process of artificially stimulating labor to begin.

Medications or other methods are used to make the uterus contract and the cervix dilate and efface. Your doctor or midwife can advise you on whether your labor needs to be induced.